


A Smoke and Mirrors Game

by shyhumblebee



Category: Naruto
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Developing Friendships, Gen, M/M, Multi, Mystery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-09-23
Packaged: 2019-07-15 17:37:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16068008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shyhumblebee/pseuds/shyhumblebee
Summary: Naruto kissed his boyfriend on the cheek as he left for work on January 9th, 2012 and never saw him again. A series of strange letters to the boyfriend and brother he left behind spark a quest to find him.Naruto and Itachi are going on an adventure. AU. Longfic. Rating subject to change.





	A Smoke and Mirrors Game

**Author's Note:**

> This story came about because I was thinking of two things. 1: Naruto and Itachi interactions are so underrated and someone should write more of them and 2. The age-old motif of letters being used to communicate with those one can’t be with anymore.
> 
> Let's go on an adventure that will probably be more nonsensical than it needs to be.

The first year, he thought nothing would be the same. It felt like nothing made sense; a thick fog clouded his senses. The world was off, wrong—like the feeling of realizing you were in a dream—and would right itself eventually.

But he wakes up every morning to a cold bed. He sleeps on the right side and stares at the stack of books abandoned on the night stand on the left. Every morning he shuns the coffee machine coated in dust, banished to the corner of the kitchen. He greets his students good morning and tells them to be safe on the way home.

He does all of this day after day, month after month, and finally, year after year.

It was the fourth year when he realized something:

Nothing’s changed except himself.

* * *

March 31st, 2017  
California, USA

The air outside isn’t as refreshing as he thought it would be. He leans back against the side of the club, the brick cold through his thin shirt, the thump of the bass echoing in his ribcage, and silently prays no one saw what happened. He runs a hand over his face, the inside of his lids showing the shocked face of the man inside. Though the night air is thick with smoke and humidity, the atmosphere of the club was dense enough to nearly shatter his skull, so he appreciates it nonetheless.

He glances at the entrance, curious if any of his friends saw and would follow after him, or if the stranger would continue to pursue him. But only unfamiliar faces move in and out of the building, much to his relief.

Something brushes up against his leg.

With a shout, Naruto jumps and skitters away only to find two yellow eyes staring back up at him. They blink at him with a twitch of its whiskers.

“Aw! Hey there little guy,” Naruto says, his heart slowing down. He crouches and rubs under the cat’s chin. “You scared the hell out of me.” The cat’s eyes squint in bliss under his affections. The people around him return to their business with mumbles of annoyance after his shout caught their attention.

Naruto’s legs eventually began to burn from squatting for so long and as much as he hated to disappoint the cat all but preening under his hand, he falls back to sit, leaning against the wall. He pouts when the cat doesn’t follow him. “Aw, come on buddy,” he whines, gesturing for the cat to come. “You want some more lovin’ don’t ya?”

The cat only watches him carefully for a moment before stalking away.

He flops back against the wall with a pout. “You’re gonna leave me too, huh?” he mumbles under his breath. 

Someone approaching in his peripheral catches his attention.

_Aw damn._

“What are you doing out here?” Small eyes scrutinize Naruto, and with his higher standing, seem almost condescending. Like he is eyeing a stupid, dead bird that broke it’s neck flying into a window. Luckily Naruto knows better. 

Naruto shrugs. “Just needed some air is all.”

Shikamaru looks unimpressed. “Yeah, I could tell. You ran out like a bat out of hell.”

Naruto picks at the fraying hole in his jeans. “Heh. You saw.”

Shikamaru glances him over before sighing and moving to lean against the wall next to him. “I think most people would notice someone knocking a guy out of their barstool.”

“You make it sound like I clocked the guy!”

“Did you?”

“No! Sheesh. I thought you saw.”

He shrugs. “I thought I saw the two of you having a good time. I definitely saw you sabotage that.”

Naruto blinks. Sabotage? Sabotage what?

Shikamaru pulls out his carton of cigarettes and moves to take one out.

“Hey! I’m trying to breathe here!”

“You’ll breathe just fine down there,” he says unconcerned, shaking one out.

“Aren’t you supposed to quit?”

He sends him a sly glance. “Don’t tell Temari. I hear enough of her nagging already.”

Naruto rolls his eyes. “Like I want any part in your marriage problems.”

He lights the end instead of answering. Together they stare across the street and avoid eye contact with anyone who crosses on their side. It’s a Friday night and yet it’s not as bustling as Naruto expected it would be. It’s been a long time since he went out for a night on the town with his friends. It was something he used to take joy in, but now he prefers to keep to either his or his friends’ homes. He wouldn’t have come tonight if it hadn’t been Sakura’s birthday, and as one of his oldest and closest friends, he’d do anything for her. 

Well, technically Sakura’s birthday was a few days ago, but it wasn’t until tonight that everyone’s schedules allowed for a proper celebration. Everyone is so busy with their own lives these days. The only times they all get together now is on special occasions. He thinks of his scene earlier.

“Did anyone else notice?”

“Hinata probably, but otherwise I wouldn’t worry about it.”

Naruto heaves a sigh of relief. “That’s good. I’d feel like shit if I stole Sakura’s spotlight.”

They fall into silence again, Shikamaru deep in thought. The faint wrinkle in his brow is something Naruto isn’t used to seeing on his friend’s face, and it puts him on edge. He cuts another glace at Naruto again, clearly weighing something in his mind.

“What?” Naruto asks, impatient.

“How have you been?”

Naruto laughs. “Is that all? I’ve been good; the kids this year are great. I’m sad they’ll be leaving me in only a few months. I’m gonna miss the little shits.”

“You always say that. Don’t worry, I’m sure your next batch will be equally as insufferable.” 

“I hope so. Then it’d be even more fun.”

Shikamaru blows out a puff of smoke, his nose wrinkled. “I’m never having a brat.”

“They aren’t that bad! And I thought you said Temari wanted one?”

“She does. I still have no fuckin’ clue where that came from. We used to be on the same page.”

Naruto chuckles. “Maybe it’s because you’re old and domestic now,” Naruto makes a _bleh_ face, his tongue sticking out.

He scoffs, exasperated. “You never change,” he says with a fond smile. But his smile falls into a stern line. 

“Hey, man. What’s bugging you tonight?”

Shikamaru glares at his cigarette for a long moment. “How long are you going to stay like this?”

Naruto’s brows draw together. “Huh?”

He shakes his head. “Never mind... Did that kid that glued your keys to the ceiling get expelled yet?”

Naruto wonders about what the other meant, but accepts the change of topic. Naruto informs him that the kid surprisingly hasn’t gotten into any major trouble since the key incident. Then about how the twins in his class came in on pajama day in matching paw-print PJs and were the cutest thing Naruto had ever seen. He could (and has) talk about his students for hours at a time, and while Shikamaru doesn’t make any contributions to the conversation, he doesn’t make Naruto feel like he’s being a bother either.

Naruto has always loved his job. The school he works at isn’t in the best district, nor has the best funding, but for him, it’s always been about the students. And these days, his students give him a sense of purpose. Naruto has to set an example. If he isn’t doing his best, why should his students?

Naruto is in the middle of recounting the activities he had his students do for St. Patrick’s Day when he spots a bright pink bob. 

“Ah!” Naruto hops up. “Sakura! How’s the birthday girl doing?” he singsongs. “Having fun?”

Sakura smiles playfully. “I was having a good time, and then I was having an _amazing_ time when I heard you fell on your ass.”

“Ugh! Was it Hinata?”

Sakura smirks. “I would never sell out my informant. ” She eyes Shikamaru and they share some sort of understanding. “Are you two done? Everyone’s getting ready to head out.”

Shikamaru pushes himself off of the wall. “Yeah, we’re done. Your place?”

“Yup. Are you still coming, Naruto?”

“Of course!” Naruto says, flashing her a smile.

She smiles back sadly.

 

Naruto groans loudly in frustration. “I’m _telling_ you guys! I didn’t knock him over! I fell back and accidentally dragged him down with me!”

“No way! He totally knocked the dude’s lights out! I saw the whole thing!” Kiba ribs from the floor.

“You didn’t see _shit_ , dog breath.”

“Why did you fall?” Hinata pipes up from beside Kiba.

Gathered in Sakura’s living room are the remains of their party after most went home after the club. Sakura is sitting on the far left of the couch beside Naruto, and Kiba is on the floor on the other side of the coffee table beside Hinata. But most surprising is Shikamaru sitting on Naruto’s other side and Gaara a few feet away at the coffee table. Usually, they are two of the first ones to go home, and they had only gotten worse with age. Naruto vividly recalls calling out a Shikamaru trying to sneak his way out of his own twenty-third birthday party at a measly eight pm. At least it wasn’t always Gaara’s fault; he would always get texts from his siblings that forced him away. Really, how many times could Gaara forget to feed his cat?! 

Kiba takes his prolonged silence as an answer. “See?! He knows what he did!”

Naruto throws a card at Kiba. “Shut up! I fell!”

Kiba plucks the card off the table. “Damn, I was hoping for a two of hearts. This is useless!” He throws it back to Naruto.

Sakura elbows Naruto in the side. “Stop giving away your hands!”

“It’s just one card,” Naruto mumbles. It’s not like he’s going to win anyways, Naruto is notoriously bad at poker.

“He’s telling the truth. The other man got close to Naruto’s face, and he fell back. When he tried to regain his balance, he grabbed the other man’s shirt, but that only made them both fall over,” Gaara says quietly, eyeing his cards.

“Oh, come on! Did _everyone_ see?!” Naruto cries. How embarrassing.

Hinata blinks away with a quiet, “Sorry” while Kiba says, “Damn right! The whole thing!” Sakura rolls her eyes.

“Show them,” Gaara says suddenly, laying his cards down.

Naruto, Sakura, and Kiba lay their cards down as well, anxiously scanning the others’ hands.

“Looks like Sakura wins,” Shikamaru says.

“Shanaroo!” Sakura pumps her fist into the air.

Naruto pouts. He hasn’t won a single game so far, and Sakura and Shikamaru are cleaning house as always. At least they learned a long time ago to stop making bets.

“Yeah, yeah. We let you win because it’s your birthday,” Kiba says.

“You say that, but you were really hoping for that two of hearts so you could have that straight flush,” Shikamaru gestures to the Kiba’s cards.

Kiba pouts and shoves his cards in Gaara’s direction, along with everyone else. “And I was so damn close! I want another round.”

Naruto scratches the back of his head. “Actually guys, I think I’m heading home for the night.”

Everyone in the room goes quiet.

Naruto gives Sakura a hug, holding her tight to him. “Happy birthday, Sakura,” he says, suddenly feeling somber. He really does love her, and he misses her in their time apart. “Have a good year, you deserve it more than anyone.” When she returns the hug fiercely, his heart clenches. If anything ever happened to her… “Be careful,” he mumbles into her shoulder.

She rubs his back slowly, sad eyes meeting Shikamaru’s over his shoulder. “Actually, Naruto, can you stay for a minute? We’d all like to talk to you.”

Naruto lifts his head, confused. “All?” He looks to the rest of his friends, all giving him uncomfortable looks or avoiding eye contact altogether. Naruto chuckles nervously. “Hey, what’s with those looks… What’s going on?”

Gaara turns to face him, his face solemn. “Are you going to have a funeral?” Gaara asks gently.

Naruto’s heart clenches so tight he can’t breathe. His mind reels from the sudden direction the conversation has taken. It feels like a knife is being taken to his chest, it doesn’t hurt any less than the other thousands of times he’s felt this way.

“It’s been five years. They’ve closed his case, haven’t they?”

Naruto’s gut twists. “Fuck them. What the hell do they know?”

He sighs. “Naruto…”

“Stop!” He shouts, loud enough to make everyone jump. Shikamaru puts his face into his hand while Kiba and Hinata look ready to melt into the floor. “Just…” Naruto glares at the carpet, “Just stop. Please.” He fights the familiar sting in his eyes.

Shikamaru runs a hand over his face. “I knew you’d be troublesome,” he mumbles. “It’s obvious you still aren’t doing well. Do you have any idea how much you’re worrying everyone? It’s been five years, but you’re still like this.” _Like what?_

“And everyone’s so busy, it’s hard to make sure you’re not doing anything stupid,” Sakura adds, her hand on his arm. “You look… We know you put on a front for us, but it’s obvious you aren’t yourself anymore. We’re just… we’re worried, Naruto. We’ve _been_ worried of course, but we figured you’d get better… but…”

Naruto’s eyes widen, his heart gives another painful thud. He hadn’t meant to worry them. Of course he knew they were all keeping an eye on him. They were hardly subtle, especially in the first year. Everyday he would get a call from _someone_ in their (admittedly large) friend group, and someone would stop by in person at least once a week. It would have been suffocating if Naruto hadn’t desperately craved the company.

Recently though, he only gets a few calls a month and sees his friends in person even scarcer.

“None of us have had the heart to push you the past few years, but if no one else will tell you, then I guess I will.” Shikamaru’s gaze pins him down. “I think you need to move on.”

Naruto is stunned. Everyone waits for him to gather his thoughts, but there are none. What’s he supposed to say to that? How could I? Mind your own business? I know? I’ve tried? _I can’t?_

There’s nothing he can say. They wouldn’t understand, no one would. No one knew Sasuke like he did. They had all made it very clear to him that they could barely tolerate his boyfriend in the past. Sometimes he wonders if they are secretly glad he is gone.

“Have you spoken to his family? What do they want?” Gaara asks gently.

Naruto shakes the dark thoughts away. “I haven’t heard from them since he went missing.” A small card with ten neatly written digits was thrust into his hand. _Call me if anything comes up._ Deep, black eyes left no room for anything but agreement. “We never really talked much in the first place.”

“They don’t want to put him to rest?” Sakura asks tentatively.

Naruto recoils but tries to stay calm. He knows his friend isn’t trying to piss him off. “He only has a brother up north, and from what I’ve gathered from the detectives, seems he’s about as cooperative as I am about declaring him dead.”

Shikamaru rolls his eyes up. “Of course,” he mutters in defeat.

“Don’t you want this to be over?” Gaara asks.

Naruto’s mouth twists to the side. “It’s not over…” He wouldn’t believe it. Until he saw a dead, lifeless Sasuke before his own eyes, he would never believe it.

“Naruto,” Hinata calls quietly. “Don’t you think… Don’t you think Sasuke would want you to try to be happy again? I don’t think…” she trails off before her resolve visibly hardens, her eyes snapping up to his. “If he loved you, I don’t think he would want you to be sad forever.”

Naruto sits there for a long moment. Then he looks to his fists in his lap. What… Sasuke wants? What the hell do these people know about what Sasuke would or wouldn’t want? They don’t know the first thing about him. They hated him. They would rolls their eyes when they thought Naruto wasn’t looking or make passing comments about how he ‘could do better.’ They don’t know anything about what Sasuke wants, and they didn’t care about what Naruto wanted either. He didn’t want _‘better,’_ there is no _better,_ he wants Sasuke!

Sakura slides her hand up to his shoulder. “Naruto… we think you should see someone about this. Someone who can help you. We’ll be here for you too of course but…”

“Don’t ever say that again,” Naruto says roughly, still looking down at his now shaking fists.

Sakura blinks. “What?”

“Don’t ever use Sasuke like that again. None of you care about what Sasuke wants, so don’t you _dare_...” Naruto chokes back a sob. “I’m not stupid. I know none of you liked him. You’re all probably happy about this,” Naruto grinds through his teeth. “That he’s gone.”

Sakura squeezes his shoulder. “That’s not true at all!” Her eyes and voice are harsh.

“It’s a little true…” Kiba mumbles.

Shikamaru and Gaara glare death at him. Kiba shrinks back and shuts up.

“Naruto, our personal feelings about Sasuke aside, we care about you. We aren’t happy that any harm has befallen Sasuke. We only want you to get better,” Gaara says.

“So how long did you all have this planned?” Naruto asks distantly.

The awkward silence is answer enough, but Sakura adds, “We just all wanted to be on the same page.”

“And everyone else who already left? Were they a part of this?”

No one answers this time and that’s just fine with him.

Naruto shrugs his shoulder out of Sakura’s grasp and gets up.

“Wait!” Sakura calls before someone says something, maybe to her, probably to him, but he isn’t listening. He slams the door on his way out and goes fifteen miles over the speed limit on the way home.

 

He can’t sleep. For hours all his mind has done is play over the events from Sakura’s birthday party. He can’t help the guilt that bubbles up for reacting like he did, but also can’t help but feel indignant. He loves his friends, but they are the last people he wants to hear opinions on Sasuke from. The nerve of them, to act like they cared about Sasuke, to use him so Naruto would do what they want.

They wanted him to see a therapist. They had casually brought up the idea of one a few times before, but this was the first time they were so heavy-handed about it. In the past, Naruto would always brush them off, not thinking about it too much. He didn’t need a therapist, because when Sasuke got back, everything would be okay again.

But it is becoming more and more clear that Sasuke isn’t coming back.

Naruto flinches, and kicks himself for even thinking that. He has to believe. He can’t give up on Sasuke, even if everyone else has. 

_If he loved you, I don’t think he would want you to be sad forever._

Naruto isn’t so sure. He doesn’t think Sasuke would want him to be sad, but he has a hard time seeing any situation in which Sasuke would be fine with him forgetting about him either.

He could just imagine Sasuke kicking his ass the second Naruto stepped through the pearly white gates for getting another boyfriend. Naruto would prefer if their reunion was a happy one. 

Naruto jerks over onto his stomach and groans into his pillow. He never gets anywhere on nights like this. He rolls over, eyeing the clock on his nightstand. Three am. With a groan he pushes himself up and grabs his laptop off the nightstand, figuring he should work on his lesson plans if he isn’t going to get any sleep anyways.

Pulling up his notes and PowerPoint for next week’s lessons, he gets to work. He’s always been bad about staying on tops of his grading and deadlines, but his time living with Sasuke forced some discipline into him. 

Nearly an hour later, a notification pops up at the top right of his screen. It’s a notification for a new email. Who the hell is emailing him in the middle of the night? He pulls up his inbox, only to find the message is untitled. Curiosity piqued, Naruto clicks on it.

_Subject: Untitled_  
_Delivered: April 1st, 2017, 4:02 AM_  
_To: Naruto Uzumaki (xXr4men4lif3Xx@yuhoomail.com)_  
_From: justreaditidiot (error:invalidaddress)_

_February 12, 2012_

_Ask my brother to show you our parents’ wedding album._

_Yours always,_  
_Sasuke_

His heart falls into his stomach. Frantically, he reads the last line over and over again. He rubs his face and reads it again. And again. His pulse starts thrumming in his ears as he realizes that it reads exactly the same as the first time.

 _Sasuke,_ his heart screams. 

He knows better than to hope at this point, this has to be some sort of mistake, but the sight of his name alone has Naruto’s imagination run wild with so many impossible scenarios. He tries to click on the from line, hoping to get more information, but nothing happens. He clicks around on every word in the email, but only his information pops up when he clicks his own email address. 

Does he call the police? Or the investigator? This is the proof that he has been waiting years for: Sasuke is alive! He doubles over, his hand smothering his mouth, trying hard not to laugh and cry, failing miserably at both. He laughs and sobs into his hands, feeling hysterical, like a madman, but who gives a fuck? Sasuke is alive!

The burning desire to hear more pulls him back up. He types a quick reply: _WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ASSHOLE?! I’VE BEEN WORRIED SICK!!!! EVERYONE THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD! CALL ME!_ And hits the send button. He stares at the loading circle and wills it to speed the fuck up already, desperate for a response. The wheel continues to turn for almost a full minute before an error message pops up about an invalid address. Naruto hits send again, only to get the message again a minute later. He clenches his jaw, his fingers shaking as he tries to send it as a new email instead. Another damn error message. He slams his fist onto the bed and growls, nearly screams, in frustration. What the hell?! Why would his computer act up now of all times?!

He stares at the email, trying to think of what to do, who to call, when he reads the single line again.

_Ask my brother to show you our parents’ wedding album._

His brow furrows. What a strange thing to send after disappearing for five years. Why not any sort of reassurance? He must have known how worried everyone would be. Or if he was in trouble, why not a plea for help? Naruto reads over the email again, looking for any sort of hint, when something he had passed over earlier catches his attention.

_February 12, 2012_

A month after Sasuke disappeared.

Naruto’s mind runs a mile a minute, trying to come up with every possible explanation, but it always comes back to one: Sasuke didn’t die the day he disappeared. But why is he getting this now if it was written years ago? Naruto eyes the delivery date at the top, dating only a few minutes ago. Naruto isn’t sure how to check when it was sent, but maybe the police would. Maybe it had been sent from his phone or something, and it only recently got the signal it needed to finish sending? Does that mean Sasuke is back from wherever he went? Naruto squints at the single sentence again. Is this some sort of code? Damn bastard, he knows Naruto is bad at puzzles!

He is going to need some help, and he thinks he knows who Sasuke wants him to call.

Naruto snatches his phone off the bedside table and pulls up his contact list. His finger freezes over the call button. What is he doing? He doesn’t even know if the email is real or not. It’s fine to delude himself, but to drag Sasuke’s brother into this seems wrong. But then again, he couldn’t just ignore this. And he had said to call him if anything came up. Aw screw it! This could be Sasuke! Naruto mashes the call button.

It rings for so long Naruto begins to think he won’t pick up.

“…Hello?” drawls the voice on the other end, scratchy with sleep.

“Hey, uh… Itachi?”

“Yes?” he asks with little enthusiasm.

“Hey! It’s, uh, Naruto. You know, Sasuke’s boyfriend?” He pauses to see if the other will recognize him, but the line remains silent. “I, uh. It’s about Sasuke. You aren’t busy are you?”

The other line is quiet for a long time.

“…Itachi?”

“I know already,” he says, barely audible.

Naruto gapes. “What?”

Was that a sigh? “I’m his next of kin, they notified me when the case was dropped.”

“Huh? No! Not that. I was just calling you, because you said to, and because I got this weird email, and I wasn’t sure what to do about it, and it’s… Well, this is going to sound crazy but- Listen it’s… it’s from Sasuke! I got an email, _just now_ , from Sasuke!”

Naruto loses seconds off his life in the tense silence that follows.

“…Repeat that?”

“I know! That’s what I thought! But it’s-! I mean, I guess I don’t know it’s him but… it’s signed from him. A few years ago. That’s another thing I don’t really get but I figured I should call you and…” Naruto trails off, not even sure what his initial thought process was. His head is still spinning and thoughts are coming and leaving faster than he can keep up with.

“Did you inform the investigators of this?”

“No. I just called you. I tried to reply to it, but it wouldn’t work!”

“What did it say?”

“It said you need to show me your parents’ wedding album.”

“…”

“Exactly! What the hell does that mean? I was thinking it might be some sort of code or-”

“I’m coming over.”

Naruto freezes. “What? Now?”

“Yes, I want to see it.”

“Oh. Okay… Are you sure that’s a good idea? You sound pretty out of it.”

The only response is the dial tone in his ear. His eye twitches.

_That fucker hung up on me!_

Naruto is grinding his teeth when something occurs to him. He redials the number.

“What?”

“You hung up on me jackass! I wasn’t finished!”

“Oh… Sorry,” he mutters sincerely. 

Well that isn’t what Naruto was expecting at all. Naruto’s stunned at the quiet apology. He was expecting the stubborn attitude of Sasuke. “Yeah, well… Are you going to bring the album?”

There’s a deep sigh over the phone. “No.”

Naruto’s eyebrow twitches when he doesn’t elaborate immediately. Why is talking with Uchihas like pulling teeth? “Why not?”

“I don’t have it. Is that all? We’ll discuss it more when I get there.”

Naruto groans. “Yeah, sure. Bye.” Sheesh. This guy is just as hard to talk to as Sasuke was. His phone clatters on the bedside table and he falls back onto his pillows, pulling the laptop onto his lap.

_Sasuke…_

Could it really be him? Is he safe? Where has he been all these years? Naruto has no idea what to do in this situation, or what to think. He eyes the clock. Itachi should be there in about thirty minutes. What is he supposed to do for thirty minutes? His head feels like it’s going to explode. By the time he got there, Sasuke’s brother would find him dead of brain failure. He better hurry up.

_Wait a minute._

Someone is coming… To his apartment… Where he lives… Right now... Naruto looks around.

 _Aw shit._ There’s no way Sasuke’s brother can know how he lives.

He hops out of bed like his ass is on fire and scrambles to his living room. He kicks socks and takeout bags under the couch, eyeing the abandoned cups on the coffee table. He peeks into them to find questionable, clumpy liquids. Face twisting in a grimace, he collects as many cups in his arms as he can carry and brings them into the kitchen. Clutter covers every inch of the countertops, forcing him to head straight to the dishwasher. After finally getting a free hand from juggling the glasses, he opened the dishwasher door, revealing a full clean load.

 _Goddamn it._ He can almost hear Sasuke laugh at his misfortunate and tell him it’s his own fault for not emptying it earlier. Sasuke wasn’t exactly Mr. Tidy, but if there was too much clutter it would piss him off. But Sasuke hasn’t been home in a long time, and most days Naruto could barely bring himself to do the bare minimum.

Naruto’s stuffing laundry into the washing machine when he hears the doorbell. Oh shit. He throws all of the laundry that won’t fit in the washer into the dyer and runs down the hall.

Opening the door, he is stabbed in the heart. He forgot how similar the brothers look. They both have pitch-black hair with matching eyes, offset by pale skin. But while Sasuke’s hair had been short and fluffy, his brother’s is long and thick, falling around his shoulders and mused from restless sleep.

It’s been years since he’s seen Sasuke’s brother, and they hadn’t treated him well. Naruto thought he looked terrible, he knows he has fallen out of shape, but at least he doesn’t look dead. The man in front of him looks like he just sat up out of a coffin and walked here to drink his blood. Naruto rubs his neck nervously, eyeing the cross necklace the other is wearing. Vampires can’t wear crosses right? 

“Can I come in…?”

“Oh, yeah, ‘course.” Naruto quickly steps out of the way as the other enters. He leads him quickly to the living room, hoping the other doesn’t notice the state of his kitchen as they pass by. He gestures to the couch. “Hold on a sec’, I’ll go get my laptop.” 

Black eyes appraise the state of the living room before he hesitantly takes a seat. What’s with that attitude?! It’s way cleaner than it was half an hour ago!

Huffing, he fetches the laptop and shows Sasuke’s brother the email, anxiously watching as he reads.

Itachi’s brows draw together.

“Well?”

Itachi tries to click around on the email just as Naruto did.

“I already tried all that. I tried to reply too, but apparently the address is broken or something, so it didn’t work.”

Itachi finally meets his gaze. “Perhaps we should turn this over to the investigators, maybe they can trace it.”

“Maybe, but I don’t think it was sent recently. Look,” Naruto points to the date Sasuke provided, “it was written years ago. Why send an email years after it was written? I think it was sent years ago, but only just got through. I doubt whoever wrote this is in the same place they were five years ago.”

“Why not?”

“Huh?”

“Why would they not be?”

“I mean… I guess they could be…”

Itachi pulls out his phone. “I’m sure the investigator will find out one way or another.”

Naruto shoves the phone into the other’s lap, holding it there. “Hold on! Don’t call the cops just yet.”

Itachi is taken aback. He stares warily at the other. “She isn’t affiliated with the police. I hired a private investigator.”

This is news to Naruto. “What? When?”

“Does it matter? Why are you reluctant to report this?”

Naruto’s shoulders sag. “I… I don’t know. Don’t you think something weird is going on? I mean… gah!” Naruto rubs his hand into his face. “We can’t just screw this up! If Sasuke really sent this, he could have said anything, could have called for help, but he chose to say that. I feel like he’s trying to tell us something.”

Itachi stares at him for a moment before slowly retracting his hand underneath Naruto’s. “I don’t follow.”

“Okay so…” Naruto visibly struggles to put his thoughts together. “So, Sasuke sent this… a month after he went missing. He wrote the date himself at the top.”

“Presumably. But it might be someone pretending to be Sasuke from years ago. Writing a false date would be incredibly easy.”

“Yeah, but why write a fake date?”

“Perhaps as part of some flimsy cover up.”

Naruto squints. “What do you mean?”

“Say Sasuke was murdered the day he went missing… the culprit could have been seen with him around the time, and so they wrote this as an alibi, so it looks like Sasuke would have still been alive far after the time they were seen together.”

Naruto’s gut clenches, his blood boiling. That couldn’t be true! “Well, why now then? The case was closed months ago, so why send this now when they already got away with it?!”

Itachi narrows his eyes slightly. “Yelling at me won’t give you answers.” He looks back to the screen. “I don’t know why. Perhaps something came up, and they were desperate.”

“No! That’s not it!” It couldn’t be! His heart is beating loudly in his ears again.

Itachi gives him a pitying look. “What do you think it is? Do you truly believe Sasuke sent this? Whether it be tonight or years ago?”

“Yes, I do!”

Itachi sighs and closes the laptop. “Naruto… I think you are reading too much into this. Sasuke is dead. Whoever sent this is playing a cruel game with you.”

Naruto’s eyes begin to sting. “What if it’s really him though? What if he’s trying to call out for our help? He mentioned you specifically in this letter. Are you fine just ignoring that?”

Itachi’s face darkens. “I’m not ignoring it. I’m handing it over to professionals who are more qualified to handle this.”

“You won’t even acknowledge that it _could_ be him!”

“It’s _not_ him.”

“BUT WHAT IF IT IS!” Naruto screams, his voice raw and desperate.

Naruto glares into Itachi’s wide eyes an inch from his and realizes that he’s panting and shaking, his fist in the other man’s shirt. He releases his grip and backs off, shame crashing down on him. Sasuke’s brother must think he’s crazy.

And maybe he is. Itachi is probably right. He knows this, knew it when he first read the email. But the hope it had ignited in him had overtaken him, blinding him to reason. He knew that, and yet…

A hand rests on his shoulder, the touch light. He looks up into tired eyes. “Tell me what you want to do,” Itachi says gently.

Naruto is once again taken aback by the other’s nature. He should really stop expecting him to act like Sasuke. His eyes fall to his hands in his lap. “I don’t even know. I thought maybe I should call you, and you’d know what to do. Does this mean anything to you? The photo album?”

Itachi tilts his head. “No… Not that I can think of. Perhaps it’s literal?”

Naruto laughs humorlessly. “Maybe… It’s worth a try, right? Where is it?”

“In Japan. Probably.”

Naruto gapes. “What? Why? What do you mean _probably_?”

Itachi brushes some loose hair behind his shoulder. “That’s where our parents’ house is. I never did finish cleaning it out.” Sensing Naruto’s questioning gaze, he continues, “It’s rather large, and I only took a few things… I know for certain I don’t have it, so it must be there.”

Naruto nods, not sure what to say. “Can we go get it?”

“Now?” he asks incredulously.

“Are we supposed to just sit around?”

Itachi looks for something in his eyes. “You’re really going to get on a plane and go halfway across the world for this?”

“I’d do anything if it meant seeing Sasuke again.”

Itachi considers him before sighing, staring at his phone in his lap. 

“What’s the worse that can happen? If we don’t find anything there or figure anything else out, then we’ll call the police.”

“The worse that can happen is whoever sent this gets away because we didn’t report it immediately,” he says dryly.

Naruto cringes. He has a point. “Okay but… What if it was scheduled?” Itachi glances at him out of the corner of his eye. “If they were smart, they would set it to go off after they were long gone, right?”

Itachi scoffs. “I don’t think whoever sent this is very smart. This is a pathetic alibi that would never hold up in court. They didn’t even use Sasuke’s email address.”

“Right! That’s another weird thing! How come there’s no email address? That should be impossible right? To send an email from nowhere?”

Itachi rubs the bridge of his nose. “I don’t know. Perhaps they… ‘hacked’ it or something.”

Naruto laughs a little at how the other stumbled over the word. “Hacked? What? The email?”

“I’m guessing something like that is possible,” he mumbles, seemingly to himself.

Naruto shakes his head. “Augh! We’re wasting time!” He snatches the laptop between them off the floor, which fell when Naruto grabbed Itachi earlier. “I’m getting us on the next plane to Japan.”

“…Fine, we’ll go. But I’m sending that to my private investigator at least. You’re right, if it’s anything, we aren’t going to mess this up.”

With that, Itachi takes the laptop to ‘get the proper tickets’ and forward the email to his investigator. Naruto hovers over his shoulder, wanting to do something but unsure of what to do. 

Itachi glances at him from the corner of his eye before looking back to the screen. “You should probably go pack an overnight bag for the trip.”

“Oh, heh. That’s probably a good idea.” Naruto rises from the couch, glancing over the other man typing on his laptop. “Do you need anything? I could pack you a bag with some of Sasuke’s clothes, his would probably fit you better.”

“That sounds fine,” he says absently, eyes never leaving the screen.

Naruto goes into his closet to pull out his old duffle bag and starts packing away clothes and a few essentials. In the back of his sock drawer, he sees a little box that sends a stab of regret through his heart.

_Sasuke.... I’ll find you no matter what._

**Author's Note:**

> I know it's not great. One day I'll be good at writing. This story will be about adventure and character interactions more than anything else. Hopefully it will be entertaining at least. 
> 
> If you have any theories at any point, please feel free to share! (I already know everything major that happens, but it will be entertaining to see guesses hehe).
> 
> You can check my profile for writing updates to see where I'm at with each project. I started doing that recently and I'll try to keep up with it so, if you're curious, you won't be in the dark in between my updates. Because those take a while sometimes hehe;;;
> 
> Thanks for reading.


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